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D.C.-area forecast: Beautiful Tuesday before murkier midweek into weekend

Sunny and warm today, then clouds and shower chances return Wednesday

By
April 16, 2024 at 5:00 a.m. EDT
A sunny Sunday along the Potomac River near the Memorial Bridge. (Jeannie in D.C./Flickr)
3 min

Today’s daily digit

A somewhat subjective rating of the day’s weather, on a scale of 0 to 10.

10/10: Fantastic forecast features fine 70s, spring sunshine, weak winds and humble humidity

Express forecast

  • Today: Mostly sunny. Highs: 72 to 77.
  • Tonight: Increasing clouds, shower/storm late. Lows: 52 to 57.
  • Tomorrow: Cloudy with showers at times. Highs: 64 to 71.

Forecast in detail

After yesterday’s scattered strong to severe storms, we’ve earned a respite today, as mostly sunny skies and comfortably warm air briefly take hold. Wednesday takes a drearier turn with clouds and rain risks returning, but Thursday could trend brighter and warmer again. A bigger cold front approaches late in the week, bringing the potential for additional showers and cooler weather.

Today (Tuesday): Nice Day qualifier! Despite a somewhat cooler start in the 50s, mostly sunny skies should help lift afternoon highs to the mid-70s. Humidity is very low with dew points in the comfortable 40s. Winds are mainly light and variable, starting to come from the south late in the day. Confidence: Medium-High

Tonight: Turning mostly cloudy during the evening with a chance of overnight showers and a thunderstorm. Lows range through the 50s as winds remain light from the south. Confidence: Medium

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Tomorrow (Wednesday): More of a messier day with cloudy skies. Could see a few showers and a thunderstorm in the morning, and then another batch of scattered showers and possibly thunderstorms in the afternoon. But there should be dry times as well. This is a “check-the-radar” kind of day. Highs should range from the mid-60s to near 70 with cooler breezes from the east and southeast at 5 to 10 mph. Confidence: Low-Medium

Tomorrow night: Mostly cloudy with scattered showers as lows dip toward the mid- to upper 50s, maybe staying up near 60 in the city. Confidence: Low-Medium

A look ahead

Thursday is trying to be a nicer day, but it still has some work to do. Skies look at least partly sunny as highs trend warmer again, in the low to mid-70s. With enough sunshine, some spots may even reach the upper 70s. A few showers are possible during the afternoon. Thursday night should see mostly cloudy skies with lows mainly in the low to mid-50s. Confidence: Medium

Friday features partly to mostly cloudy skies with highs in the 60s to maybe low 70s, depending on how much sunshine sneaks through at times. Scattered shower chances are back by Friday afternoon and night, with cooler Friday night lows in the mid-40s to low 50s. Confidence: Medium

The forecast challenge this weekend is how quickly a cool front can clear the area. As of now, it looks like the front could stall close enough to keep a chance of showers going into the weekend, especially toward southern areas, but things could still change. Highs should be in the mid-60s to near 70 Saturday, then only in the low 60s on Sunday. Saturday night lows range through the 40s to near 50 in the city. Confidence: Low